Caliper Swapping

[Varcon]

I have had enough of the 6 pots on my zx6r (tokico 6 pots), they are crap, the seals have gone, and the lever travell is unbeliveable !

So i wanna swap them over, i have heard that Nissin 4 pots may fit straight on, is this true ? And if so would people recommened this ?

Or any other ideas ?

[TLS-Moose]

The four pot nissins from GSXR11K/L/M/N, GSXR750J/K/L/M, RGV250, and even the early Triumph's are the ones you want When my current Tokico 6 pots start to go thats probably the direction I'll head in ........ though I beleive there is a later version fitted to some Honda's that I beleive is even better ...... the 90mm mounting point isthe prime criteria

[Varcon]

Well, by luck i just managed to grab a set for cheap. Ill let you all know how i get on when they arrive!

[thelastsuperpower]

One thing to consider is where the disc/pad lines up, as some have done this swap on their 9's (same setup) and have noticed more wear on the insides of the disc.New pads mayyy be a possibilty.

Keep us posted cos ive been thinking of doing this mod for ages now, just never got around to it

[Varcon]

One thing to consider is where the disc/pad lines up, as some have done this swap on their 9's (same setup) and have noticed more wear on the insides of the disc.New pads mayyy be a possibilty.

Keep us posted cos ive been thinking of doing this mod for ages now, just never got around to it

Yeah will do - ill have to check it all works first - but i got the calipers cheap enough that if it dosnt work i can sell them on again for more...

[jam]

Some of the 4 pots will need a 1mm washer placing between the caliper and fork mounting to space them correctly and centre them on the disc. 6 pots that use a single pad per side are notoriously crap, the pad tends to rock on the centre piston and moves the outer two pistons back very slightly which equates to more initial lever travel when you first pull the brake on. The Nissin 4pot or Tokico 4pot conversion is a well known fix for the problem, but make sure the caliper is centralised on the disc and use a washer of correct size if needed when bolting them up.

[Varcon]

Well all fitted and all centered !

The difference is unvbeliveable, it really is ! Now there is almost no excess lever travel, and they give such a good response and feeling !

Best mod ever for £20 and i definatly recommened it !

[jam]

The problem with 6 pots that use a single pad per side, is caused by the long pads rocking slightly on the central piston and moving the outer two pistons back very slightly. This means that when you pull the lever, the pistons have slightly further to move before they start braking, which translates to excessive lever travel and a lack of initial bite, so far the only 6 pots that I've found that work well are the Harrison Billet sixes, which use an individual pad per piston and don't suffer the same problems that afflict the Tokico 6 pots, changing the master cylinder sometimes helps to alleviate the problem but it will never be completely cured, even with a Brembo 19mm radial with a 20 ratio lever they will still lack initial bite. Most of the guys that raced the SRADs, GSXR1000 K1/2 etc ditched the 6 pots and fitted 4 pots from the GSXR11/750 for precisely that reason.

[thelastsuperpower]

Just out of interest, did you fit tokico or nissin 4pots Ed?

[Varcon]

The nissin 4 pots, from a 99 bandit 1200.

They give soo much more feeling, you pull the lever and they start to bite within the first 3-5mm of travel ! Full pull of the lever is about 2 cm, so its really great !

I also noticed today that my master cylinder is nissin too, i dunno if this is standard for the 6R or not - seems strange for kawasaki to fit a nissin MC with tokico calipers !

The pads of the 4 pots also bite into more of the disk - the 6 pots left about 2 mm round the endge unused, while the 4 pots use this all up ! Now i love my brakes - gives me more confidence in the whole bike !

[Cheese Monkey]

Just done the swap meself.

Wow.

So much better. Soon as I got me braided lines. wavys, new pads, they're going to be AWESOME

Honestly could not believe the difference, [censored] 6 pots

[thelastsuperpower]

I thought about swapping calipers but tbh my stock ones arent that bad.The stopping power is immense its just the lever travel is a bit excessive.
I started stripping my 6 pots today, no wonder they started sticking- the previous owner had reassembled the seals with copper grease

Ive invested in one of those banjo bolts with a built in bleed nipple for my master cylinder too, only cost about £3.
Oh and some speedbleeder type screws for £2.50.Good old wemoto

[thelastsuperpower]

Update - Just finished overhauling my brakes and f*ck me is it a huuuge difference!
I now have the lever set on 5 and its further away from the bar than it was before on 1.Brakes kick in after 10mm of travel compared to 35mm.

Jobs a good 'un!

[cowelly]

i have chopped and changed nissan, tockico 6 and 4 pots on my tl and find the 6 pots work best but only if you use decent sintered pads which is the prob with most brakes, i prob would have been as well just to use sintered pads and braided lines with the 4 pots with equally good results. i had at one point put nissin calipers on which worked brilliantly to start with untill the pads had worn about 1mm and then they became soooo grabby that it actually caused a low speed off when a car braked hard in front of me. this was because the pads actually come over the disc by about 2mm and as the pad wore it could grab the top of the disc, deff something to watch out for.
generally a good 4 pot set up is as good or better than a 6 pot, and if thats wot rossie has then is good enough for me.
good luck

[cowelly]

by the way Vercon, it's easy enough to rebuild 6 pots although a little expensive if the pistons are scored or scabby. i would be intersested if you wanna flog em